Scourge
by Shukketsu-Sakura
Summary: He walked amongst those who were considered normal and beautiful as a monster...then he finds someone who sees his true beauty...
1. Scourge of the Mist

He wore a heavy cloak about him that shed his face from the world, revealing only his ankles down, which were covered as well.

He walked among the 'normal' people of the village, ashamed of himself for not being beautiful.

A few times he had tried to rid his 'filthy' body of his life, cursing himself for being afraid.

He stopped daily at the slowly-moving river to remove the hood from his head. He glanced into the near-still water at his 'sickening' face…

Tears cascaded from his silvery eyes, running over the shark-like gill structures on his 'ugly' blue face…and he fell to his knees.

He used his sharpened nails to claw at his face. When he would scrape his gills, the pain was unbearable…

He cursed himself for being weak. He stood and wandered along the bank of the river, the edge elevating until it was an extremely high drop to the bottom.

The river met the ocean, greenish-blue going on for miles. He stood at the lip of the cliff, staring into the bluish abyss below him. He began to lift his right foot fearfully over the edge, his entire body shaking and his face tear-ridden. He was about to shift his weight to his right leg when something caught his attention…

The handle of a sword jutting from a nearby tree. He rapped his fingers around it and hefted it out of the tree…it responded to his touch. It flailed the scales that adorned it, which meant…it was _alive_…

He had kept the scaled sword and named it Samehada to match his own name: Hoshigaki Kisame.


	2. Captured Runaway

Kisame hefted Samehada over his shoulder, resting it into the crook of his neck. "Say, Itachi, who are we locating and exterminating exactly?"

Itachi closed his eyes, but still strutted on ahead. "A man that owes dues to our Leader. He hasn't paid them, so we are to dispose of him."

Kisame snorted. "This is ridiculous…" He scoffed under his breath.

"And why is that, Kisame?" Itachi caught him off-guard, turning to him in question.

Kisame flinched at the sound of his partner and best friend's cold voice. "It's just that…I think that if he has something to take care of, then _he_ should do it."

Itachi shook his head. "This is our living, Kisame; our occupation. This is what we do. We have been instructed to do this, so _get over it_." He started with a sympathetic tone, and ended with a venomous bite.

Kisame flinched again. He hated it when Itachi even remotely yelled at him.

_--"Freak! Get away! You don't belong here! MONSTER!!—_

He clamped his eyes shut and almost dropped Samehada, while his mind was riddled with thoughts of his life before the Akatsuki…

_--He ran as fast as he could, the massive sword placed on his right shoulder and held by his right hand. He looked back over his left shoulder at the mob of villagers that were chasing him._

"_Get out of here!"_

"_Freak!"_

"_Hideous _thing_!!"_

"_MONSTER!"_

_He kept running, tears flying from his eyes as he fled his home…--_

"Itachi?" He addressed him.

"Yes, Kisame?" Itachi answered, turning to walk again.

"Can we please try and get this over with quickly?" He asked pleadingly, an almost-whimper escaping his lips.

Itachi bowed his head in understanding, still walking.

-o-o-o-o-

Sakura ran as fast as she could, as instructed by Naruto and Sai. She ran, and ran, and ran…into a tree. She fell backwards onto her back, trying to blink the pain away from her upper forehead.

She stood and brushed herself off, glancing at the surroundings. Trees. Grass. Dirt. Your average forest. She felt like she was going to pass out. _'Stupid tree…Had to be…in my…way…'_

She stuck her right arm out to rest on the tree for support, and held her head with her left. She clenched her eyes closed, and hissed at the throbbing in her skull. She looked up again.

"Shikamaru! Kiba! Neji! Anybody!?" She called. No sound. "I'm separated…" Calling for her teammates had only increased the growing ache in her cranium. Clamping her eyes shut, she rubbed at the bridge of her nose.

Sakura could swear she heard someone calling her name, but she left consciousness before she could tell…

-o-o-o-o-

Kisame felt so much better after ripping the man to shreds. Itachi buried the body as agreed if Kisame did the work. What a wonderful assassination. He smiled to himself as Itachi pivoted on his heel to face away from him and begin the journey back.

"That was fun, eh, Itachi?" He chuckled to his partner.

"No. It wasn't." He replied bluntly, placing his straw hat on the crown of his head.

Kisame made a face to say 'damn, you're such a killjoy.' He followed nonetheless.

After three branches to the head (all to the back, except for one on the side), and one trip and fall to the face, they came to a stump and stopped. Itachi stood there a moment, surveying the area, and Kisame sat. He'd had enough walking.

"Stand, Kisame." Itachi ordered. Kisame stood abruptly at command, like a puppy. "I feel chakra. Close by. Keep on your guard."

Kisame looked around as Itachi had. He saw nothing in the trees. Nothing in the sky. Nothing on – he did a double take. Lying on the ground was a pile of red, pink, and black…girl.

Itachi was already standing over her, looking at her uninterestedly. He sighed at the sight. "Pathetic."

Kisame made his way over to her as well. She was pretty, and looked to be about eighteen. Maybe nineteen. Not too young, but not too old. "Can we keep it?"

"There is no reason to." He closed his eyes.

"Yes there is," Kisame countered, stooping down to look more closely at the girl. "She's a kunoichi. Of the Leaf." He reached behind her head gently and untied the headband that was wrapped like it should be across the top of her head. He held it out to Itachi to show him.

"Pick her up." Itachi commanded. "We'll take her back to the hideaway."

Kisame attached Samehada to the strap across his back, and lifted the girl up easily. Itachi bound her hands and feet as Kisame held her bridal style. They then began to venture through the forest to Amegakure.

-o-o-o-o-

"Sakura! Hey, SAKURA!!" Kiba cupped his hands around his mouth to project his voice.

"Wait just a moment, I'll look." Neji prompted, crouching slightly. His white eyes perused the area with the Byakugan; searching, seeking…"No sign of her, I'm afraid."

"What do we do?" Shikamaru questioned nervously, wringing his hands. "We can't lose her; she's our only medic-nin!"

"And she's our friend!" Kiba roared. "She's not a tool!"

"Do you have a soft spot for our pretty friend?" Neji smiled knowingly.

Kiba turned a bright and visible shade of red. His eyes were wide, and his mouth hung slightly agape. "No!" He shouted in embarrassment. The truth was that the dog-nin _did_ have a little crush on the pink-haired medical kunoichi.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Let's get back to the task at hand here, people." Kiba stopped glaring and Neji stopped smiling; they looked to their leader. "We need to find Sakura."


End file.
